“Diaper rash” (also referred to as diaper dermatitis or incontinent dermatitis) is a common form of irritation and inflammation affecting both infants and incontinent adults within the skin regions normally covered by a diaper (e.g., rectal and genital areas). Diaper rash may develop when skin is exposed to prolonged contact with urine or feces, which increases skin pH and contributes to the breakdown of the stratum corneum. Although diaper rash is usually resolved in a short time period, the skin still becomes susceptible to more serious secondary infections once the stratum corneum is damaged. One of the more problematic secondary infections associated with diaper rash is “yeast infection”, which is typically caused by Candida albicans. Under the conditions that result in diaper rash, for instance, the normally unicellular yeast-like form of Candida albicans can convert into an invasive, multicellular filamentous form. Candida infection may result in painful swelling and become difficult to resolve. In severely immune compromised patients, Candida albicans infection may even spread throughout the body and cause systemic infections. It is believed that some of the symptoms of Candida infections may be minimized or eliminated with early treatment. Currently, however, no convenient system exists for rapidly alerting a caregiver or user of a secondary Candida infection on the skin.
As such, a need currently exists for a technique of rapidly and simply detecting the presence of Candida infection on skin.